‘We are on strike to save education’

For several hours last Friday in Calabar, the Cross River State capital, members of unions in the education sector, the Joint Action Front (JAF), a civil society organisation, protested what it called the rot in the education sector. They were joined by some civil society, human rights and non-governmental organisations. EMMANUEL AHANONU (Political Science) and PRINCESS ANN OTUDOR (100-Level Theatre Arts, University of Calabar) report.

Their anger showed as they converged on the Botanical Garden Park on Mary Slessor Avenue in Calabar the Cross River State capital. It was 8:30am and the presence of these placard-bearing men and women startled passers-by.

That early Friday morning, their solidarity songs rent the air. “Education must be funded! Education must be funded!! Education, Education, Education must be funded!!!” They sang. The song continued till 9:30am when they were set for the grand march against what they called the government’s insensitivity to the development of education.

The demonstrators are members of unions in the education sector under the aegis of the Joint Action Front (JAF). Joined by civil society, human rights and non-governmental organisations, lecturers, non-teaching staff and students of public universities in the Southsouth zone, they took to the streets to draw attention to the plight of education.

Displaying placards with inscriptions such as: “Nigeria is not broke; where is the N2.6 trillion paid as subsidy for undelivered fuel?”; “Nigeria government show concern; Education is a right for all citizens”; “Save education in Nigeria, do what is right”; “Public schools are dying”; “Federal Government must stop deceiving the public, implement agreement with ASUU now” and “They must stop looting and fund education”, the protesters marched on major roads, paralysing vehicular movement.

Leaving the Botanical Garden, the protesters marched through Target Street to Nelson Mandela Street and gathered at the Watt Market – the biggest market in Calabar. For 20 minutes, the protesters addressed traders, telling them of the government’s careless policies to “kill education”.

At Etim Edem Motor Park, JAF Secretary Comrade Abiodun Aremu addressed the crowd in pidgin English, on why the people must stand by the striking lecturers. He listed what he called government’s iniquities against quality education, saying the country’s leaders were looting public funds to establish private school at the expense of public institutions.

A lecturer at the Faculty of Law of the University of Calabar (UNICAL), Prof Israel Wuruji, while addressing the protesters, said: “We are out today to let Nigerians know that the public education system is collapsing or has collapsed absolutely. If nothing is done to address the situation, our children would suffer. All of us here benefited from the public education system. But, today, our children can no longer have quality education at their door step. Why must we send our children to private schools built by corrupt politicians?

“Universities have been closed down for two months now, but the government is not concerned to address the issue. We were told that the government would release N130 billion to fund education. When the government realised that what is needed to make our schools provide quality education is N1.3 trillion, which they want to provide within the next three years, they agreed that they will release N400 billion every year. But they have brought it down to N130 billion. The question is: if you have a child who has been diagnosed of a disease that needs surgical operation and you are giving that child Panadol and telling him ‘don’t die’, can we say you care for the child? So, what the government is doing today is paying lip service to quality education.”

Prof Wuruji noted that the ongoing ASUU strike had nothing to do with lecturers’ salary, saying the union is on strike to force the government to improve poor facilities in schools.

To ensure that their message got to the ordinary people on the street, the protesters addressed the public in different languages, including Hausa, Igbo, Efik and pidgin English. At Gbogo-Biri Street, the message was communicated to members of the Hausa-Fulani Muslim Community by Alhaji Abubakar Abdulahi, the group’s secretary.

Leaving U. J. Esuene Stadium, the protesters proceeded to the Cross River Government House. As they approached the gate of the Government House, a drama ensued. Some armed policemen and soldiers drafted to the scene ordered them to leave the area, saying the governor was not around.

It took about 10 minutes for the professors among the protesters to convince the security operatives that the demonstration was not against the governor. After the explanation, the policemen escorted the protesters with four vans till they dispersed hours later.

Other areas visited by the demonstrators included Diamond Hill and Murtala Mohammed Highway, from where they dispersed.

In a statement, its chairman, Dr Dipo Fashina, and Secretary Aremu, said the rally was to identify with ASUU and the public towards improving education.

“Each time the union goes on strike, it is because the federal and state governments have failed to implement agreements they freely entered into and signed with the lecturers’ unions. Central to saving public education is that the government must fund education in line with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) standard of 26 per cent and make education free for all,”said the statement.

Students, who participated in the rally, urged the government to accede to their lecturers’ demands.